China’s Sinopec Zhongke raises refinery operating rate to 70%

Fanny Zhang

25-Sep-2020

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–China’s Sinopec Zhongke Refining and Petrochemical has ramped up production at its new 200,000 bbl/day refinery at Zhanjiang in Guangdong province to around 70% of capacity, a company source said.

The utilization rate may be raised to 80% by mid-October and to more than 90% by early 2021, according to the source.

The refinery, which was brought on stream in mid-June, started commercial operations in late August.

“We estimate that the refinery’s crude throughput may reach 2m-2.1m tonnes in the fourth quarter and 4.5m-4.6m tonnes in the first half of next year,” said ICIS senior analyst Anita Yang.

Currently, the refinery gets all its crude feedstock from the Middle East, which will remain the largest crude supplier for the refinery in the future, she added.

The refinery can produce 6m-6.5m tonnes of gasoline and diesel annually.

It plans to sell half of the output to the southwestern part of the country via a pipeline, while the balance will be shipped out to the southern regions and overseas markets.

Domestic fuel inventories are quite high at present and the market is oversupplied, requiring the new refinery to export some output to reduce inventory pressure.

Sinopec Zhongke is expected to start exports in December at the earliest when its wharf is ready for use, Yang said.

(recasts story for clarity)

Visit the ICIS Coronavirus topic page for analysis of the impact on chemical markets and links to latest news.

READ MORE

Global News + ICIS Chemical Business (ICB)

See the full picture, with unlimited access to ICIS chemicals news across all markets and regions, plus ICB, the industry-leading magazine for the chemicals industry.

Contact us

Now, more than ever, dynamic insights are key to navigating complex, volatile commodity markets. Access to expert insights on the latest industry developments and tracking market changes are vital in making sustainable business decisions.

Want to learn about how we can work together to bring you actionable insight and support your business decisions?

Need Help?

Need Help?